The present invention relates to collecting, retrieving and distributing data and more particularly to a system and method for collection, retrieval and distribution of data in an efficient manner.
The amount of data being collected, retrieved and distributed over systems or networks is growing at a faster rate than such systems or networks can efficiently handle. Networks are getting faster but the number of clients or data consumers, the number of different places the data may need to be sent, the timeliness of receipt of the data, and the amount or volume of data produced is ever increasing as well. This situation is exacerbated by environments that include unreliable communications, low-bandwidth connections or links, ad-hoc nature of network connections and topology, and other inefficiencies and environmental limitations. For example, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) data may be collected by equipment in remote areas without a reliable high bandwidth communications structure. The challenge is how to collect and store large amounts of ISR data or other data while making those consuming the data aware of its existence, making the data accessible in a timely manner, controlling the distribution across limited network sizes and availabilities, providing access to the right data by the right people or entities, as well as other challenges.